The Caged Bird's Lament
by BiOCaAM
Summary: slight GrimmHime Who knew that a simple gift such as a flute could lead to so much trouble?


A/N: Yeah, another GrimmHime oneshot, but I really needed to get this one out of my system. Just as a guide, the songs Orihime plays on the flute in this story are as follows:

The first song she plays is the Song of Storms from the Legend of Zelda.

The second song she plays, when she encounters Grimmjow for the second time, is the Song of Healing…from the Legend of Zelda. Enjoy.

* * *

_The Caged Bird's Lament_

To say that I was surprised when Aizen Sousuke showed me a brief act of kindness would be the understatement of the century. Here was a man who didn't hesitate in killing people, and he was giving something to me, allegedly to relieve me of my boredom in Hueco Mundo.

"Ulquiorra tells me that you often complain of being weary," Aizen said to me. "Therefore, I give you this." We were walking down the hallway, doing seemingly nothing. I'll admit that I feared Aizen, but he made me feel calm for some reason, unlike most of the Arrancar who loitered the hallways of Las Noches.

He handed over a flute, a brand new silver brass with untouched keys. I couldn't fathom where he could have gotten such a thing. As if reading my thoughts, he said, "It was a gift from a friend."

"Oh…I couldn't accept this."

An eyebrow shot up. "I wouldn't be giving this to you if I didn't want you to have it, Orihime."

He was making me feel uneasy, but what I was I supposed to do? He dropped it into my outstretched palm. My hand flinched at how cold it was. I might as well have been holding a slab of ice. The feeling soon passed, however, and by the time I looked up, he was gone.

* * *

In the days that followed, I struggled to remember what I had learned in music class about the flute. I guess there was some self-doubt there, too. Every time I recalled something, I was scared that it would slip away just as easily as it had come. The only way I could keep going was to assure myself that there wouldn't be anything else to do except roam around the hallways, and the last time I did that it didn't end pleasantly. 

"I see Aizen's given something to entertain you, woman," Ulquiorra said when he came into my room a week or so afterwards. He eyed me suspiciously, almost as if he expected that I was hiding something. I didn't like him too much, but he wasn't nearly as threatening as Grimmjow Jaggerjacques, the sixth Espada who had the temper of a beast. If there was one thing that scared me beyond all comprehension, it was that Arrancar. Thankfully, I never saw him beyond walking down the hallways, and even there my heart would race when I saw him.

"Oh, um, yes," I stuttered. Ulquiorra still stood there, apparently waiting for an explanation or clue as to what it was. I looked down at the instrument, grazing my fingers over the keys. "It's a flute, an instrument from the human world. It's not very loud, so it won't disturb anyone, I figure." I managed a crooked smile. That was all you could really do in the gravity of the hollow world.

"Play something, then."

To be honest, I was completely taken aback at this. It didn't seem like Ulquiorra was one for music. I had gotten somewhat good, but I could only play one song that I remembered from when Sora was alive.

"Oh…uh, okay." When I started to play, I nearly forgot I was there. It was like being in my own world. Music really is something extraordinary. You can feel everything all at once. I suppose that words can't really describe it; you would need to experience it for yourself.

Once I set the flute down, I immediately glanced at him to see his expression. I could not have been more shocked if the world had been sucked into oblivion at that moment. Ulquiorra Schiffer actually looked…_scared. _His eyes said everything; they were widened to the size of dinner plates, and his arms just sort of hung there. They weren't in his pockets like they usually were.

"Ul…Ulquiorra? Are you okay?" I asked softly, standing up, but he instinctively took a step back.

"I…need to go…" And with that, he left. What had caused the fourth Espada to flee in fear of a _song _like that? All I could do was stand there, confused. Maybe he'd heard that song before, and it didn't make him comfortable. Maybe he thought it was really that bad. Whatever it was, I myself was a little afraid. I looked down at the flute and decided that maybe it was time to find a new hobby.

* * *

I didn't see much of Ulquiorra after that incident. He came in briefly to give me food, but that was it. I'm not saying that he had done much before, but it was even less this time. It was painful; now I was really alone. 

Now, something definitely interesting happened during this period. I had gotten sick of staying in my room all the time, so I decided that I'd go by the window out in the hallway to practice. I really hadn't considered the possibility of anyone being there, so it seemed like a good idea at the time.

I'd gotten pretty talented at sensing reiatsu, so when Grimmjow spoke, I was scared out of my wits. "You've been playing that god damned thing for weeks now. It's been driving me off the freakin' wall."

"Grimmjow…? How can you hear me play, anyway? I've only been practicing in my room, and it hasn't been that loud…" I murmured, looking at my feet. His eyes made red flags in my mind go up at a hundred miles an hour. His devilish grin vanished, replaced with a scowl.

"Are you deaf or something, woman? You could hear a hair drop in this place, let alone whatever the hell that thing is," he roared.

"Flute," I whispered. "It's called a flute."

"Like I care! You better stop with that stupid playing, or I'll make you stop!" I was scared he was going to hit me for a minute, but he just walked away.

As you can see, I have a valid point for fearing him.

* * *

I didn't play much after that. When I did, I made sure that Grimmjow wasn't anywhere near my room. Even then, I made a point of playing softly. 

But apparently, I wasn't careful enough.

I wasn't even playing anymore; I had put it away, getting ready to go to sleep. Imagine everything deathly quietly in your room, and the door slams open…loudly. I don't think you'd be very calm.

I nearly squeaked as I darted under my bed. There was no chance I'd face him after I'd made him upset. But I knew he'd sense my reiatsu. I could at least try, though.

"It's getting really old now, woman," he bellowed. I involuntarily flinched. "I told you once, and I'm not telling you again."

I suddenly thought of something. Maybe I could distract him from finding me if I played. He wouldn't be able to think clearly. Without breathing, I took the flute from besides me and started to play softly.

"Damn it! Do you think this is a game? You're annoying as—" He stopped mid-sentence. Something on his face changed as I played. It was a cross between drowsy, livid and depressed. I briefly stopped to take this in. I had never seen that look on Grimmjow's face before.

I hesitated. This scared me, seeing Grimmjow like this. It was almost like watching a different side of him come out. He stared at the ground in a daze. It seemed like I had succeeded in my plan for him to ignore my reiatsu.

"So your music really does work miracles, woman?" he said quietly. "There's nothing you _can't _do, is there?"

This made me stop. "What did you say?" I breathed by accident.

He looked up, smiling devilishly. My heart dropped into my stomach. "So you're as naïve as I thought you were."

"You're damned stupid, you know that?" he said, walking over to the bed. Bending over, Grimmjow lifted the cover to the bottom and saw me there, wide-eyed and scared out of my wits.

"G…Grimmjow…" I, Inoue Orihime, was completely at a loss for words when I looked into the feral cyan eyes of Grimmjow Jaggerjacques.

Without saying anything, he yanked me out from under the bed by my collar and lifted me up, reminiscent of the time when the two female Arrancar came into my room and, frankly, tried to kill me.

And Grimmjow was the one who saved me…

I admit to never understanding that man. He could be the good guy one minute, and an insane, sadistic bastard the next. Honestly, there was no consistency to his behavior. It would be different if he was scary all of the time, but you just couldn't tell.

I guess that's what made me fascinated about him, though. Just the sheer unpredictability made me curious. No matter what he did to me, I would find a reason to keep finding him.

"Look here, _Hime-chan_, you're not nearly as special as everybody wants you to believe. You're just a human with…barrettes. It's that stupid shinigami's fault you've got powers, anyway," he yelled. I simply hung there, disregarding anything he said to me. That was all I could do to prevent it from getting to me.

For some reason, though, I felt the need to reply. "And you're not nearly as scary as you want to believe, Grimmjow."

He looked astonished.

And then I was the one who was surprised.

Something apparently shifted in him, because Grimmjow set me down instead of throwing me to the floor, which was what he'd probably do. Staring at him, I decided that maybe it wasn't the best time to talk. I didn't want him to add insult to injury…that's happened too many times already. Kurosaki couldn't protect me forever, and he was getting destroyed by the Espada. I had to learn to fend for myself.

"Grimmjow, I don't care if you're angry with me," I started calmly, swallowing, "but I've been meaning to ask you something. You say that you do what you want, yet you're always following Aizen's orders." He kept his gaze on me the whole time. Something had definitely changed, because he didn't look so animalistic. See what I mean about inconsistency?

He inhaled and turned away from me. "…It's not like I have a choice, Orihime. None of us do."

With those words, Grimmjow walked away, leaving me more depressed than ever.

* * *

You could say that it was inevitable, but I eventually relied on Grimmjow a lot more than Ulquiorra, who had stopped coming altogether. Aizen had handed the 'privilege,' as he put it, over to the sixth Espada. At first, I was going to say something against it, but when I saw Aizen's look…I couldn't bring myself to do it. That's an obstacle I doubt I'll ever be able to overcome. 

My opinion of Grimmjow didn't change; I still thought he was ruthless and cocky. He always talked to me as if he were condescending to 'my level,' whatever that meant. Sometimes I just wanted him to die, although the sincerity of that statement could be challenged.

I passed most of the time by sleeping or playing the flute. I think Grimmjow knew not to press the flute matter further, so he just let me play. Pity or not, I was grateful that he didn't inflict any physical pain on me.

A month after that incident, I was sitting by my window when he came in. I had sensed his reiatsu before, so I wasn't surprised. He froze when he saw that I didn't move.

"I don't think I'm going to leave Hueco Mundo alive, Grimmjow."

"What the hell are you—"

I didn't let him finish. I turned around and looked at him, hoping it would have some effect. Because he knew as well as I did that Aizen would toss me behind his shoulder like a piece of garbage.

When I thought of Sado…

Ishida…

Rukia…

Kurosaki…

I couldn't hold the water works in anymore. The fact still remained that nothing I could do or so would convince Aizen to keep me alive at the end of this ordeal…if there was an end, anyway.

Rising to my feet, I whispered, "I have to go…" Brushing past him, I didn't expect Grimmjow to do anything, but he wrapped his hand around my wrist.

"You're a damn piece of work, you know that? I wonder if all human women are like you," he murmured as he turned around to face me. My hair felt like it was going to stand on end. How would you feel if you were standing next to a psychopathic killer two feet taller than you, and claims to be a member of the greater sex?

I had a very bad feeling in my gut at that moment, and it was sneaking up towards my chest. And for once, my gut was right, because right then and there Grimmjow Jaggerjacques did something I never thought was possible:

He kissed me.

Yeah, you probably saw it coming. But it wasn't even my fault. He's the one who started it.

It lasted only a split second before I broke away and shouted, "What do you think you're doing?! Do you have any idea what you just did?" I couldn't be in the same room with him. I did what I do best.

I ran away.

* * *

This time around, I was truly, without a doubt alone. We had ruptured something that could've been called a friendship. Well, more so a familiarity. Knowing Grimmjow, he'd be pissed to the nth degreeI wasn't wrong. 

With my ego completely shattered (I had retained about half of it since I first talked to Aizen), I had no choice but to turn back to Ulquiorra. It would make Grimmjow angrier, no doubt, but I didn't care much anymore.

I was by myself, of course, and walking down the hallway towards my room when I felt Nnoitra's reiatsu. I paled. I found him to be a letch. He was always trying to make a move on me.

"Hey, Pet-sama! What's goin' on?" he shouted from behind me. I groaned. This wasn't going to end well.

"Not today, Nnoitra. Just don't." As I expected, though, this only made him more determined if anything. He was one of the more determined Arrancar in Hueco Mundo. I mean, there wasn't much to fight for, unless you fought for the sheer hell of it.

"And why would I do that, Pet-sama?" He strode over in front of me and narrowed his eyes, that freakish smile still on his face. "After all, why do you think I call you that, anyway?"

A few moments passed before it really sank in. I took a few steps back and started running down the hallway. I had never in my life been as scared as I was right then and there. I wanted nothing more than to be as far away from Hueco Mundo as possible.

"_You can run, but you can't hide, girlie!"_

_No, no, no!_ I thought, making too sharp of a turn and tripping over my own feet. Getting to my knees, I was confused when I heard two pairs of footsteps. One had to belong to Nnoitra.

And before I knew it, I was staring Grimmjow in the face.

"What the hell are you doing, woman?"

I looked up at him. The gravity of his stare had me speechless. All I could say was, "Nnoitra…"

His face contorted in rage. "What's that son of a bitch up to now?"

I frowned. I didn't like Nnoitra one bit, but I didn't want him to get hurt. Going past me, Grimmjow turned down the corridor where the fifth Espada was. I cringed at some of the language he used, but I was glad he was getting Nnoitra off my back for me.

"All right, all right, I'll back off. I hope you're happy, getting to keep her all for yourself." Minutes passed before Grimmjow came back, looking, to be frank, extremely irritated.

"Did he do anything to you?"

I shook my head and stood up. Being honest, I was ashamed. Someone always needed to protect me and I hated that.

He started to walk away, his hands in his pockets as usual, when I stopped him. I held back for a minute, but I needed to show him that I really did care.

I wrapped my arms around him and whispered, "I know it's not much, and you're probably still angry at me, but thank you…"

I guess that made something of a difference, because he said, "I wasn't angry at you."

"That's a relief?"

"You make it sound like you wanted me to be mad at you."

"Well…knowing you, I thought you _would _be upset."

"Hey, if _you _of all people can stun me, then what make you think I don't have any tricks up my sleeve?"

"I don't know. You don't look like somebody who changes too easily," I lied.

"…You can let go of me now, you know."

"Oh. Right."

* * *

_Ending Notes: Well, it isn't my best—one shots really aren't my forte, but I rather liked it. I'm overall happy with the outcome. Reviews earn you a cookie. I spent a week and a half on this, so feedback in any form is welcome. Until next time!_


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